In the spring of 1985, our third child was born, which was about the same time my husband found out he was transferred to Dallas. He worked up there, while we lived in Corpus Christi until the baby BJ was five months old. Right before we moved, he was baptized with my first and most enduring friend Lisa and her husband as God-parents. (We had met at a La Leche League meeting in an un-airconditioned house in the summer before our first babies were born.)
DC, AE, and BJ were baptized at All Saints Episcopal Church, my present church. In the recent baptisms here, I’ve become aware of how they were blessed then, even though I didn’t realize it. I know when they were baptized, I was too concerned about the wiggling children and crying baby that I might have to nurse in church—Horrors!! I still didn’t realize that God was in the midst of us, and now I am warmed to know he was. I have a totally new perspective on their baptisms, because I see the past with a new perspective—how the Divine enfolded us all, sealing each child for him forever. The reality was there then, but neither CB nor I saw it. The way opened, but each of us must be aware enough to enter in—we were not then, but are beginning to see so much more of God now.
We moved to Dallas and lived there for the next 2 years. CB traveled frequently; and we hardly knew anyone. BJ always wanted to be held and learned to scream to get his way. DC hated leaving his best friend and struggled and cried going to a new school for first grade. I still remember calling his kindergarten teacher, worried that he didn't like school, and she reassured me that after his first month, he'd feel better. That was true, and he suddenly shot off being able to read and loving it. 3 year old AE was very shy and hid under a coffee table at the first La Leche League meeting we went to. (I just recently learned that the LLL group this other mother and I started is still meeting!) I remember AE sweetly asking me sometime after Thanksgiving when her wish (from breaking the wishbone from the turkey) would come true--she'd wanted to become a fairy! I treasure the wistful look I recall on her face, so sweet and innocent. And this is the place where the family's interest in soccer started, with little DC playing for the first time.
We moved back to Corpus Christi with DC going into third grade; AE in kindergarten; and BJ a 2 year old toddler, who was always so chubby that he could never wear his brother's hand-me-downs. (He could only fit into Oshkosh coveralls!) My husband still traveled a great deal. I was grateful that my mother continued to visit from WA state two times a year, for several weeks each time. My dad, who hated to travel, would come for a few days each Christmas. This was a busy time of LLL meetings for me, school activities, and soccer for both DC and AE.
This is also when DC rejoined his best friend Chris, and they started a life-long bond with three other boys. (These young men have been in each other's weddings and continue to be in touch, even though they went to different colleges and live in different cities.) They always played soccer together, too. The family of one of the boys brought DC each week to the confirmation class at First United Methodist Church. We parents acted like ours had--in an a-religious way just as Gannet Girl's parents did--not caring one way or another. CB and I were in New York City when he was confirmed, and from what I hear, he had to wear an outgrown jacket and pair of pants. You can tell his parents "didn't care," which sounds reprehensible to me now.
This was at the time I was pregnant with our surprising fourth child. CB was still gone frequently, and no plans had been made, but God brought forth a baby, who is now MJ and my only child at home. It was quite a shock to find out I was pregnant, even after taking an at-home pregnancy test--When the doctor's office called after their test, I kept telling them there had to be a mistake! And how grateful am I that she was never a mistake! That spring, I remember taking DC and his four pals, with BJ to the rocks by the water here, and telling AE the secret of the coming baby, while the guys climbed and played.
When MJ was one year old, we learned that CB was being transferred to Rhode Island. That was a wrenching shock to the older kids and me. Coming from WA State, I thought I knew what "cold" weather was, but that winter (and autumn) in Rhode Island were quite a shock to us. We certainly had to buy a lot of warm clothes, coats, and blankets--things unnecessary in south Texas! So in 1991, we moved to Rhode Island.
.jpg)
